President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev has addressed the country's state companies in the context of ensuring stability of the national currency, the tenge, Tengrinews reports.
"The Holding [Samruk Kazyna] and national companies are requested to support the national currency by exchanging their money [from dollars into tenge]. This will be very important for the tenge,” Nazarbayev said after the speech by the Chairman of the Board of Samruk Kazyna Holding Umirzak Shukeyev at the extend government meeting on February 11.
“So there are your interests, and there are common interests. I am addressing all of the national companies. Of course, you have to agree, there are times of need. Kazakhstan will try to prevent sharp fluctuations of the tenge from happening and take into account all of your interests," Nazarbayev said.
A well-known Kazakh financial expert, Director at the Center for Macroeconomic Research Olzhas Khudaibergenov, also stressed that it was necessary for the state companies to buy tenge, because this would clearly demonstrate to the population that the government was serious in its intentions to de-dollarize the economy. It would also create a back pressure and strengthen the tenge, he said.
The extended government meeting was also attended by the Governor of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, who once again reassured everyone that there would be no sharp depreciation of the tenge any time soon.
“We will continue pursuing the policy of maintaing our currency in the set corridor (of 185 tenge per dollar +3/-15 tenge). It is reasonable under the current economic circumstances. Should there be some changes at the external markets, we will prevent a shock devaluation of the currency from happening and will work to make the change of the tenge exchange rate gradual,” he said.
Reporting by Assemgul Kassenova, writing by Dinara Urazova, editing by Tatyana Kuzmina
President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev has addressed the country's state companies in the context of ensuring stability of the national currency, the tenge, Tengrinews reports.
"The Holding [Samruk Kazyna] and national companies are requested to support the national currency by exchanging their money [from dollars into tenge]. This will be very important for the tenge,” Nazarbayev said after the speech by the Chairman of the Board of Samruk Kazyna Holding Umirzak Shukeyev at the extend government meeting on February 11.
“So there are your interests, and there are common interests. I am addressing all of the national companies. Of course, you have to agree, there are times of need. Kazakhstan will try to prevent sharp fluctuations of the tenge from happening and take into account all of your interests," Nazarbayev said.
A well-known Kazakh financial expert, Director at the Center for Macroeconomic Research Olzhas Khudaibergenov, also stressed that it was necessary for the state companies to buy tenge, because this would clearly demonstrate to the population that the government was serious in its intentions to de-dollarize the economy. It would also create a back pressure and strengthen the tenge, he said.
The extended government meeting was also attended by the Governor of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, who once again reassured everyone that there would be no sharp depreciation of the tenge any time soon.
“We will continue pursuing the policy of maintaing our currency in the set corridor (of 185 tenge per dollar +3/-15 tenge). It is reasonable under the current economic circumstances. Should there be some changes at the external markets, we will prevent a shock devaluation of the currency from happening and will work to make the change of the tenge exchange rate gradual,” he said.
Reporting by Assemgul Kassenova, writing by Dinara Urazova, editing by Tatyana Kuzmina